Sports briefs May 1: Aspen girls tennis strong on first day of regional play

Aspen High School girls tennis against Fruita Monument on Tuesday, March 5, 2019, at Maroon Creek Club. (Photo by Austin Colbert/The Aspen Times).AHStennis-atd-030619-3

Aspen girls tennis makes regional finals in six flights

The Aspen High School girls tennis team had a strong showing on the first day of regional play Wednesday in Grand Junction. The Skiers will be represented in six different finals and will go head-to-head against regional powerhouse Steamboat Springs in five of them. AHS went 14-1 in matches.

Mary Williams, Macy Hopkinson and Karina Keller all advanced to the singles final for Aspen at 1, 2 and 3 singles, respectively. Addy Walson and Bliss Pekkala are into the finals at No. 1 doubles; Stef Wojcik and Olivia Burkley in at No. 2 doubles; and Quinn Ramberg and Virginia Tassi in at No. 3 doubles. The No. 4 doubles team of Sadie Bayko and Rose Becker lost in the semifinals.

Basalt, fielding a varsity team for only the second year, did not have anyone advance out of the first round.

The regional will conclude today with the top two finishers in each flight making next week’s state championships in Greeley.

Aspen girls golf loses to Glenwood Springs in first ‘Frying Pan Cup’

The Aspen High School girls golf team played a challenge match against Glenwood Springs on Wednesday, losing 4-2 at the Ranch at Roaring Fork Golf Course near Carbondale.

It was the inaugural “Frying Pan Cup,” which the two teams intend to compete in each year. The winning trophy, which will be kept by the winning team each year, will in fact be a frying pan.

Tessa Guthrie and Julia Higdon won their matches for the Skiers, while the others went down to the wire. Zoe Guthrie lost in a one-hole playoff.

The match concluded the regular season for Aspen. Next up, the Skiers will head to Gunnison and the Dos Rios Golf Club for their Class 3A regional tournament. AHS will have a practice round Monday before the one-day tournament is held on Tuesday.

Aspen High girls soccer game at Middle Park called off Wednesday

The Aspen High School girls soccer team’s game at Middle Park on Wednesday was canceled because of the weather and field conditions in Granby. With Saturday being the final available day to play games in the regular season, the game will likely not be made up.

This means Aspen (11-2) will play its final regular-season game at 6 p.m. Friday against Basalt (4-8-1) in a non-league game. AHS beat Basalt 5-0 on April 11 in their league contest. The Longhorns, however, have won three straight, including a 10-0 win over Moffat County on Tuesday.

Aspen Cycling Club race called off Wednesday because of the weather

The first race of the Aspen Cycling Club’s season was postponed because of the weather.

The season was supposed to get underway with the Lower River Road Time Trial, but conditions did “not allow us to run the race safely,” the club posted on Facebook. The race will likely be made up at a later date this summer.